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The Harry Potter Movies Glossed Over What Might Be The Most Important Chapter From The Books

Published 21 hours ago6 minute read
An image of Alan Rickman as Severus Snape in the Harry Potter movies.

may have rushed the most important part of the story. Released between 1997 and 2007, the Harry Potter books became a global phenomenon, spawning the famous Warner Bros. movie series, which ran from 2001 to 2011. Although the movies are a millennial Christmas marathon staple, those who obsessively compare them to the books have noticed a lot of discrepancies between them. While some are out-and-out changes to the books' material, some could be called "lies of omission," and one of these key omissions sets up Harry's scar and ties to the villain.

The Harry Potter movies, overall, do a very good job of communicating the books' most important themes. Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley, and Emma Watson as Hermione Granger are exceptional at portraying the ride-or-die friendship of the Golden Trio. This often hilarious central triad is perfectly complemented by the dark conspiracies brewing in the background, but it was hard for the movies to show the plots in their full complexity. So it was that .

By Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2's ending, it is clear that Snape was on Dumbledore's (Michael Gambon) side all along, but it isn't so clear whether he was on Lily's side. And understanding that is integral to the story's meaning. The movie depicts Harry ending up in Dumbledore's office and viewing Severus Snape's thoughts in the Pensieve, as per the books. But , (played as children by Benedict Clarke and Ellie Darcey-Alden).This obscured the crux of the story: how Harry came to defeat Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes).

True to form, the memories succeed in showing what is most important: that Voldemort's Deathly Hallows extend to Harry himself, rendering him The Boy Who Lived. And that Snape was a double agent. This was no less of a big reveal due to the rushing of the Snape-Lily content. That Snape was "good," instead of bad, was the biggest reveal of both the books and movies and the most memorable part of the sequence, inspiring faith in humanity. But , and showing his friendship with Lily more would have helped here.

Lily-Snape-Hogwarts

The Pensieve memory scene in Deathly Hallows: Part 2 prioritizes explaining Voldemort's immortality in the Harry Potter universe, leaving less time for Snape and Lily's most important conversations. The sequence shows Snape comforting Lily after Petunia (Fiona Shaw/Ariella Paradise) verbally attacks her for her powers, and it shows Snape spending time with Lily as a child and connecting with her, as well as Snape's suffering at the hands of James Potter (Adrian Rawlins/Alfie McIlwain). But it doesn't show Severus calling Lily a "Mudblood."

The movie didn't portray how Severus was a potential love interest for Lily, whether she ended up with James.

It also leaves out Lily insulting James and the obvious indicators that Snape had a crush on her. As such, the movie didn't portray how Severus was a potential love interest for Lily, whether she ended up with James. for many years while they knew each other. Additionally, the movie did not portray how easy it probably was for Snape to get sucked into Death Eater culture as an outsider and abused child, but not even the books really explored this element.

Young Snape reading a book

Leaving some of Snape and Lily's vital conversations out of the movie may have been wise, to keep the runtime acceptable, but it lessened the impact of the Pensieve scene. Neither the books nor the movies were obliged to dive deeper into Snape's evolution into a Death Eater, given that it may have risked a lot of generalizations and, resultantly, elicited sympathy for the Death Eaters. But and how it conflicted with her friendship with other characters and her own sense of self.

Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter with a purple background with sparkles.

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As Snape is one of Harry Potter's main characters, this would have been valuable. In failing to show Snape and Lily's most important conversations, the Pensieve scene didn't just fail to reflect Snape's complex character, but it also didn't set up Voldemort's destruction as well as it could have. Snape's love for Lily is a huge part of what got Voldemort killed. Although it failed to save Lily, as Voldemort disregarded Snape's plea to spare her, it ultimately drove Snape to betray Voldemort in .

Harry Potter Franchise Poster

J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Harry Potter

Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Tom Felton, Alan Rickman, Matthew Lewis, Bonnie Wright, Evanna Lynch, Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon, Richard Harris, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Alfred Enoch, Harry Melling, Gary Oldman, Robert Pattinson, Warwick Davis, Oliver Phelps, James Phelps, David Bradley, David Thewlis, Katie Leung, Jason Isaacs, Imelda Staunton, David Tennant, Jamie Campbell Bower, Timothy Spall, Robbie Coltrane, Eddie Redmayne, Jude Law, Katherine Waterston, Ezra Miller, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Johnny Depp, Mads Mikkelsen

Harry Potter

Movie(s)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

Harry Potter is a multimedia franchise about an orphaned boy who enrolls at Hogwarts School of Wizardry, where he learns the truth about himself, his family, and the terrible evil that haunts the magical world. Adapted from the novels, Harry Potter is an eight-episode film saga that follows the journey of Harry Potter and his friends, Hermoine Granger and Ron Weasley, as they navigate the tricky world of growing up, school life, and magic. Starting from year one and moving to their seventh year, the films chronicle the students' time at Hogwarts while unfurling a sinister plot that centers around the unsuspecting Harry. With the return of the dark wizard, Voldemort, the students and professors at Hogwarts will fight to carry on as the world around them may change forever. Harry Potter has expanded beyond the world of its films and novels with several video games, a spin-off film series titled Fantastic Beasts, and even attractions at Universal Studios.

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